ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell women's soccer team welcomes Princeton to Berman Field on Saturday afternoon for a noon first touch to open Ivy League play on Homecoming.

MATCH NO. 10
Princeton at Cornell
SITE: Berman Field – Ithaca, N.Y. (natural surface)
RECORDS: Princeton (4-3-0, 0-0-0 Ivy League), Cornell (1-4-4, 0-0-0 Ivy League)
SERIES RECORD: Princeton leads, 29-8-4
SERIES STREAK: Princeton, won 1
WEATHER FORECAST: 70°, partly cloudy, 10 percent chance of rain; Winds: SSE 5-10 mph
BROADCAST: ESPN+
Stats: CornellBigRed.com

LAST TIME OUT
MALIBU, Calif. (SEPT. 22, 2024) — A two-goal first half by No. 19-ranked Pepperdine helped ignite the Waves' offense to a 3-0 clean sheet over the Cornell women's soccer team at Tari Frahm Rokus Field in Malibu, Calif., on a picturesque Sunday afternoon in Southern California.

Megan Edelman, Tabitha LaParl, and Kyra Murphy found the back of the net for the Waves, who extended their unbeaten streak to six matches. Jillian Medvecky (three saves) and Taylor Rath (one save) combined for the Waves' fourth clean sheet on the season.

Tanum Nelson, Reinna Gabriel, Laken Gallman, and Cecily Pokigo combined for the four shots on goal that the Big Red registered on the day. Junior goalkeeper Natalie Medugno made five saves in the setback.

IVY LEAGUE OPENERS
Cornell is opening Ivy League play against Princeton for the second consecutive season and 11th time in program history. Only one of the 10 previous Ivy League openers against the Tigers has occurred since  2000, as then-No. 14-ranked Princeton posted a 4-2 over Cornell last Sept. 22 at Roberts Stadium.

The Big Red is 2-7-1 all-time against Princeton in Ivy League openers. Cornell is seeking its first win in an Ivy League opener over Princeton since posting a 4-0 victory on Sept. 15, 1990, at Robison Alumni Fields.

Saturday will be the first time Cornell is opening Ivy League play at home since 2021, when it snapped a 21-match winless streak to Ivy League opponents (0-19-2) with a 1-0 victory over Columbia on Sept. 25, 2021. Over its last 11 Ivy League openers on its home pitch, Cornell has a 6-5-0 record, with all six triumphs coming against fellow Empire State and Ancient Eight rival Columbia.

Since Cornell elevated its women's soccer program to varsity status before the 1982 campaign, the Big Red has a record of 19-21-2 in its first Ancient Eight contest of a season.

KNACK FOR THE NET
Cornell has scored at least one goal in 39 of its 56 matches played under Rob Ferguson, dating back to 2021.

The 69.6 percent of contests with a goal ranks as the highest clip in Cornell program history, surpassing Randy May, the program's first head coach, who saw his teams score in 67.7 percent of the 282 matches he coached during his 18-year tenure as head coach (191 games with a goal).

HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF MATCHES WITH A GOAL
By Coach — Cornell Program History
1. Rob Ferguson (2020-Present) — 69.6 percent (39-of-56)
2. Randy May (1982-99) — 67.7 percent (191-of-282)
3. Berhane Anderberhan (2000-05) — 66.0 percent (64-of-97)
4. Patrick Farmer (2012-16) — 62.2 percent (51-of-82)
5. Gretchen Zigante (2006) — 58.8 percent (10-of-17)
6. Danielle LaRoche (2007-11) — 48.1 percent (37-of-77)
7. Dwight Hornibrook (2017-19) — 38.6 percent (17-of-44)

As of late, the Big Red has displayed its scoring prowess, scoring a goal in 12 of its last 15 contests, 22 of its previous 26 matches, and 25 of its latest 31 fixtures, dating back to 2022.

Although Cornell has only been held without a goal in three of its last 15 contests, the Big Red has not scored in its previous two matches. Should Princeton register a clean sheet on Saturday afternoon, it would be Cornell's first time going three consecutive contests without scoring since going four straight matches without a goal during the 2021 campaign, spanning Oct. 9 to Oct. 30 — all of which were Ivy League contests.

HOME, SWEET, GOALS
Entering Saturday afternoon's match, Cornell has scored in a program-record 14 consecutive home contests. The record was set in the Big Red's 3-2 loss to Boston College on Sept. 5, besting the previous mark of 12, initially set across the 2013-14 seasons.

The Big Red's 14-match streak of home contests with a goal is the third instance in which Cornell has scored a goal in 10-plus consecutive home fixtures, also joined by a 10-match span between the 1985 and 1987 seasons (Oct. 16, 1985 to Sept. 30, 1987).

CONSECUTIVE HOME MATCHES WITH A GOAL
Cornell Program History
1. 14 matches (Oct. 29, 2022 - Present) — 22 goals (1.57 goals per match)
2. 12 matches (Sept. 13, 2013 - Oct. 3, 2014) — 32 goals (2.67 goals per match)
3. 10 matches (Oct. 16, 1985 - Sept. 30, 1987) — 24 goals (2.40 goals per match)
4. 9 matches (Sept. 22, 1996 - Oct. 14, 1997) — 20 goals (2.22 goals per match)
5. 8 matches (Sept. 23, 2011 - Oct. 2, 2012) — 13 goals (1.63 goals per match)

TOURNAMENT TESTS
Saturday's match with Princeton is the latter of Cornell's two consecutive matches against opponents who played in last year's NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship, as the Big Red fell to Pepperdine, 3-0, last Sunday at Tari Frahm Rokus Field in Malibu, Calif.

Facing Princeton will be the second of five opponents Cornell has to play who participated in last year's NCAA  Division I Women's Soccer Championship. Among the other tournament programs from last year that Cornell has yet to face includes a trio of Ivy League rivals in Columbia (Oct. 9), Harvard (Oct. 13), and Brown (Oct. 26) in the Big Red's penultimate regular-season match. The three remaining contests will all occur on the road.

Last year, the quintet combined for a 55-22-16 record (.677). This year, the programs have a cumulative record of 19-10-12 (.610), highlighted by Harvard (4-0-4), Pepperdine (6-2-2), and Princeton (4-3-0), all having at least four wins on the season.

2023 NCAA TOURNAMENT TEAMS
On Cornell's Schedule in 2024
Brown (12-3-2 in 2023; 3-2-3 in 2024)
Columbia (11-5-3 in 2023; 2-3-3 in 2024)
Harvard (13-4-2 in 2023; 4-0-4 in 2024)
Pepperdine (9-5-5 in 2023; 6-2-2 in 2024)
Princeton (10-5-4 in 2023; 4-3-0 in 2024)

CLEAN SHEET CLUB
With her clean sheet against Lehigh on Sept. 8, junior goalkeeper Natalie Medugno increased her career total for clean sheets to 5.5.

Medugno is one-half of a clean sheet away from tying Meghan Cauzillo (1997-00) and Meghan Kennedy (2015-18) for the 10th-most shutouts in Big Red program history.

Should Medugno record a full clean sheet on Saturday, it would be her second clean sheet of the season while surpassing Cauzillo and Kennedy and match Katrina Matlin (2003-06) for the ninth-most clean sheets by a Cornell goalkeeper.

CAREER CLEAN SHEETS
Cornell Program History
1. 22, Melissa Gambrell (1986-89)
2. 21.5, Kelsey Tierney (2013-16)
3. 20, Sue DeLong (1990-91, 93-94)
4. 16, Sherrie Chocola (1984-86)
5. 13, Katie Thomas (2001-04)
6. 10, Marybeth Bell (1995-96)
7. 9, Kate Thompson (1983-84)
8. 7, Kate Alexander (1992-93)
9. 6.5, Katrina Matlin (2003-06)
T10. 6, Meghan Cauzillo (1997-00)
T10. 6, Meghan Kennedy (2015-18)
11. 5.5, Natalie Medugno (2022-Present)

NOBODY WINS
As of Thursday morning, Cornell's four draws are tied with 17 other programs for the fifth-most ties by a Division I program this season.

Ahead of the Big Red includes Abilene Christian (2-2-6), Fairleigh Dickinson (2-3-5), Florida (3-2-5), Louisiana (5-1-5), and Towson (2-3-5) have recorded more draws this season.

Currently tied for the third-most ties in a single season with the squads from 2002 and 2015, Cornell's next draw would match the 2022 squad for the second-most draws in program history. Only last year's team, which registered a 4-5-6 record, had more draws in a single season.

IVY PRESEASON POLL
Cornell was picked to finish eighth in this year's Ivy League women's soccer preseason poll, the conference office announced on Aug. 19.

After claiming last year's inaugural Ivy League Women's Soccer Tournament title, Harvard was tabbed the preseason favorite upon receiving 10 of the 16 first-place votes. The Crimson concluded with a point total of 120, 12 points ahead of Brown (108), which received four first-place votes. Behind Brown was Princeton, which finished with 103 points and the other two first-place votes.

Rounding out the eight-team poll ahead of Cornell's 22 points was Columbia (77 points) in fourth, Dartmouth (57 points) in fifth, Yale (48 points) in sixth, and Penn (41 points) in seventh.

SCOUTING PRINCETON
Princeton enters Ivy League play with a 4-3-0 overall record, having been dealt setbacks in its last two matches against Georgetown, 1-0, on Sept. 15, and a 1-0 decision to Fairfield last Wednesday (Sept. 18).

The Tigers have been held without a goal over their last 196:11 of match action, including each of their previous two matches. Princeton's last time being held without a goal in two consecutive matches was when it lost to No. 9-ranked Rutgers, 3-0, on Sept. 4, 2022, and LSU, 2-0, on Sept. 8, 2022.

Should Cornell register a clean sheet on Saturday afternoon, it would be Princeton's first time being shutout in three consecutive matches since 2013, when it drew with La Salle, 0-0, on Oct. 1 before falling to Dartmouth (Oct. 5) and Brown (Oct. 12) by identical 2-0 scores.

Heather MacNab leads Princeton with her five points (one goal, three assists) and is one of two Princeton players with multiple assists on the season, joined by Alexandra Barry (one goal, two assists). Barry and Brooke Dawahare (two goals) are behind MacNab with four points. Dawahare is the lone Princeton player who has scored multiple goals this season.

Goalkeeping duties have been reserved solely for Tyler McCamey, who has played all 630 minutes between the pipes for Princeton, posting a 0.71 goals-against average and .865 save percentage.

Forward Pietra Tordin is slated to return to the Tigers' lineup this weekend after representing the United States at the FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup in Bogotá, Cali, and Medellín, Colombia, where she earned a bronze medal as the U.S. defeated the Netherlands, 2-1, in extra time on Sept. 21 in Bogotá. North Korea defeated Japan, 1-0, for its third Under-20 World Cup title.

While with the U.S. Under-20 National Team, Tordin scored four goals, the most by an American at an Under-20 World Cup since Maya Hayes in 2012. Three of Tordin's four goals came in a 7-0 victory over Paraguay, marking the first hat trick by an American at the event since Savannah DeMelo in 2018.

Tordin earned Player to Watch honors from the United Soccer Coaches on Aug. 13, one of 19 forwards honored. She was also named to TopDrawer Soccer's preseason team, garnering second-team honors as a forward. She was ranked as the No. 19 player in the nation, among eligible sophomores, juniors, and seniors.

PRINCETON'S LAST TIME OUT
FAIRFIELD, Conn. (SEPT. 18, 2024) — Elle Scott's 80th-minute goal helped lead Fairfield to a 1-0 victory over Princeton at Lessing Field.

Princeton outshot Fairfield by a 17-7 margin and had a 5-2 edge in shots on goal.

42 YEARS, 219 MILES, 41 MEETINGS
Princeton has the advantage in the series, 29-8-4, dating back to the first meeting between the two Ivy League programs in 1982.

Cornell is seeking to win its second consecutive home match against Princeton, a feat that has yet to be accomplished since winning three straight home matches (1990, 1992, 1994).

The Big Red has scored at least two goals in its last two meetings with the Tigers, marking the first time Cornell has scored multiple goals against Princeton in consecutive matches since doing so in five straight seasons (1990-94).